Robert Mapplethorpe Phaidon Book

Robert Mapplethorpe was one of the twentieth century's most important and influential artists, known for his groundbreaking and provocative work. He studied painting, drawing and sculpture in Brooklyn in the 1960s and started taking photographs when he acquired a Polaroid camera in 1970. This comprehensive monograph is an overview of the artist's black-and-white photography of floral still lifes, nudes, self-portraits and portraits among other subjects—and also includes a selection of his color images.

The author

Arthur C. Danto was a revered critic, philosopher and author.

Mark Holborn is a writer, editor and book designer. He collaborated with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation on the original volumes of Mapplethorpe's work.

Dimitri Levas is an art director who worked closely with Mapplethorpe for years, and with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation on numerous publications.

Patti Smith is a writer, performer and visual artist.

Andrew Sullivan is an author, editor and political commentator.

Hardcover, 12 1/8 x 11 1/2 in., 384 pages